Iguana b&w text 208 IGUANA • VOLUME 14, NUMBER 3 • SEPTEMBER 2007 IRCF ON THE MOVE Pharmaceutical manufacturer Eli Lilly and Company has awarded a $24,000 grant to Project Heloderma partners Zootropic, IRCF, and Zoo Atlanta for the preservation of the Guatemalan Beaded Lizard, Heloderma horridum charlesbogerti. The project will receive $8,000 a year for the next three years. Lilly has developed and marketed a med- ication for the treatment of Type II dia- betes under the trade name “Byetta.” The drug is a synthetic version of the exendin peptides found in Heloderma venom. A $19,600 grant from the Disney Wildlife Conservation Fund has also been awarded to Project Heloderma, specifically to cover the cost of the local environmental education program. The program reaches 6,000 school children and 4,000 local farmers from 20 Mayan Chorti and Ladino communities in the Motagua Valley, home to the remnant population of the Guatemalan Beaded Lizard. The grant will help cover the cost of personnel and equipment, as well as providing environmental awareness T- shirts, posters, and interactive magazines for students from June 2007 through July 2008. Project Heloderma/Project Palearis The late model Suzuki Samurai donated by the IRCF to Project Heloderma/ Project Palearis has just received a custom graphic treatment featuring the logos of partners Zootropic, IRCF, and Zoo Atlanta. The vehicle graphics comple- ment the Project Heloderma/Project Palearis environmental education pro- gram theme, which is recognized by thousands of local school children and farmers. Wild Trees in the Cayman Islands The IRCF recently published Wild Trees in the Cayman Islands, 2nd ed. (see Book Review, p. 194). The book will be dis- tributed in the Cayman Islands; however, limited quantities will be available through the IRCF. The IRCF con- tributed time and resources with the intention of providing revenue for the Blue Iguana Recovery Program. IRCF ID Cams The IRCF recently fabricated cases and assembled ten customized battery-oper- ated CCTV camera units to help the Blue Iguana Recovery Program assess survival and dispersal of Blue Iguanas released into the Salina Reserve on Grand I R C F O N T H E M O V E Iguana 14.3 b&w text 7/28/07 9:57 PM Page 208 IGUANA • VOLUME 14, NUMBER 3 • SEPTEMBER 2007 209 Cayman. Based on a commercial indoor- grade surveillance unit, the cameras have been mounted in airtight dry cases with an optical window for the lens. The cam- eras will be placed in front of rock holes where they will be used to determine if the holes are in use as iguana retreats, and to identify occupants by their bead-tag combinations. Team Blue 2007 is cur- rently laying out 20 x 40 m sampling areas and counting active iguana retreats in them; the cameras will substitute for constant human monitoring. The results will be used to estimate the population of released Blues surviving and still occupy- ing the protected release areas. Volunteers Sought for Fieldwork on Little Cayman, Cayman Islands Sister Isles Rock Iguana (Cyclura nubila caymanensis). Two or three Little Cayman fieldworkers are required to work with the project leader during October–November. Primary tasks (in three phases) include (instructions provided): (1) mapping nest sites in various habitats, (2) conducting a structured population assessment using distance sampling methods, and (3) exca- vating hatched nests to measure nest fecundity in key habitats. Please visit www.ircf.org/volunteer.html, and select Sister Isles Rock Iguana. Skills and challenges: Demands extreme physical exertion in tropical heat and humidity, off-trail in densely vege- tated terrain. Expect thorny plants and extremely hostile rock in some areas. A high level of physical fitness and stamina is essential. Color vision (to distinguish red, orange, green, blue, yellow, and white glass beads through binoculars) is important. Aptitude for recording quan- titative data (GPS, data entry forms, etc.). Exposure to toxic plants may cause allergic reactions. Scratches, cuts, and bruises are to be expected! Rewards: Learning and practicing wildlife conservation research techniques; exploring the Cayman Islands’ least pop- ulated, most natural island, teeming with wildlife; working with a healthy, abun- dant wild iguana population. What we expect: That you will be available to carry out tough fieldwork involving long hours on at least a three- days-on, one-day-off schedule; that you will carefully follow guidance and instructions from the group leader while on duty; and that you will commit to collecting the most accurate and highest quality information possible. What we offer: Free shared accom- modations (probably project-rented space with bedding, etc. provided), local trans- portation, and access to the specialized equipment and information you need to be effective and productive. Team Blue Volunteers Sought for the Blue Iguana Facility Year-round Team Blue volunteer oppor- tunities are available at the Blue Iguana breeding facility in the Queen Elizabeth II Botanic Park on Grand Cayman. Please visit www.ircf.org/volunteer.html to learn more. IRCF ON THE MOVE Iguana 14.3 b&w text 7/28/07 9:57 PM Page 209 210 IGUANA • VOLUME 14, NUMBER 3 • SEPTEMBER 2007 IRCF CaribSea Michael D. Kern Susan Solomon Joel Friesch Jim Schauf (FAST) Desiree Wong Marianne Lee Ivan Schwab Miki England Virginia Huang Atla Brewer Ron Greenberg Horned Lizard Conservation Society Alex Jones Richard and Victoria Burt David Friant Project Heloderma Disney Wildlife Conservation Fund Eli Lilly Zoological Society of San Diego Wildlife Discovery Center Oklahoma City Zoo Jacksonville Zoo VIN Foundation BowTie, Inc. (Reptiles Magazine) Sandy Quinn Erik Anderson Sterling Williamson Blue Iguana Maine Community Foundation Animal Behaviour Management Alliance Robert Dorson Trust Greater Cleveland AAZK Len Goldberg Happy Hollow Zoo Deborah Slotpole Nora Fahlber Jean Dorson Point Defiance Zoo AE Nash/Johnathan Sculpin Mary J. Hausherr David O. Price Stephen Urban Matthew Ackley Claes Martenson Milwaukee County Zoo Valerie Lewallen Pat Shipman Molly McCoy Tricia Jiang Keiko Mizumoto Gharia l Mult i Task Force John Brueggen Matthew Wightman Andros Iguana Shedd Aquarium Scott Monroe T he IRCF expresses sincere gratitude and appreciation to the many individuals and organizations whose support and contributions help further the Foundation’s mission of preserving endangered reptiles and the natural habitats and ecosystems that support them. Iguana 14.3 b&w text 8/12/07 10:48 PM Page 210